Heart of Friendship
HEART OF FRIENDSHIP Episode Two, Season One, of Rise. Enjoy <3 Heart of Friendship When I wake up, I’m momentarily confused by where I am. Where’s the smoky air of the Twolegplace? The tiny breaths of Jewel, Ruby, and Emerald along with the sighs of Cloud and Sara? It all came rushing back. I open my eyes in a flash and sit up. Rubbing sleep out of my eyes, I groom my fur down before padding outside. The sun is already up and is shining in my eyes. I spot Nightshadow off a way off and I start to pad towards him, only to stop abruptly when I see a she-cat next to him. “Hey, Bryce,” he purrs, “I don’t believe you’ve met Feathershine?” “No,” I tilt my head to the pretty gray she-cat, “I’m Bryce.” “I’m Feathershine,” the she-cat returns. “She and I are together,” Nightshadow gives her a coy smile. Despite only knowing Nightshadow for about five minutes yesterday, he’s never glowed this much. “That’s nice,” I move to scoot past them but Nightshadow stops me. “Do you want to come on a hunting patrol with us?” His dark yellow eyes seem to shine with Feathershine near him. “I mean there’s not much for you to do here anyways.” I hesitate. I am hungry. “Sure,” I agree. Feathershine stays by my side while Nightshadow curls his tail around the gray she-cat. The gray she-cat gives me a smile. “You come from the Twolegplace?” I nod tersely. I glance shyly towards the two of them and find Nightshadow mindlessly running his eyes over Feathershine. I smile slightly. It was endearing to see the couple showing their affection. If Jewel, Ruby, and Emerald were here, I’d be cooing over them too. Feathershine and I continue our small talk until Nightshadow pulls up. “This is the Dip, or some cats call it a valley.” I peer over his shoulder and frown. “It’s quite large,” I point out, “to be a ‘dip’.” Nightshadow gives a low laugh. “Well it’s not quite large enough to call a valley,” he flicks his tail, “and plus, we only own half of it.” His eyes are shadowed as he gazes at the other half. “Why only half?” I ask quietly. The black tom’s yellow eyes are clouded with a faint sort of grief. “The Vipers took it,” he gives a gusty sigh before setting towards the bottom of the Dip. Feathershine pauses, giving me an apologetic glance before heading after her boyfriend. I slip down after them, ears pricked for any movement. The hunt is way more successful out here for sure. I catch three mice before I know it and I give a little purr of satisfaction. “Nice catches!” Nightshadow calls out as he and Feathershine make their way over to me. “Don’t eat them now,” Feathershine advises, “we usually bring them back to the Coalition before spreading the prey for everyone to have a share.” I dip my head knowingly. “I do the same for my sisters.” “Your sisters seem to be a rambunctious bunch,” Nightshadow twitches his whiskers. I nod. “Jewel is the ‘oldest’ and she’s probably the most intelligent out of the three of them. She always knows what I’m thinking and feeling. She really understood me I guess. Ruby was the strongest out of the three of them. She and Emerald are really close though. The two are like opposites. Ruby is strong while Emerald was born the runt. Ruby is loud while Emerald is always quiet. They love playing together though and Ruby always makes sure Emerald gets a fair share, if not more. Jewel and I were counterparts I guess.” Before any of them can respond, Nightshadow tenses. Feathershine glances worriedly at her boyfriend before following his gaze. The pretty gray she-cat lets out a hiss of surprise before dropping into a low crouch. I’m confused until I glance where they’re eyes are fixed. I stiffen when I see the same brute from yesterday along with a lone gray-white tom. The gray-white tom’s sky-blue eyes are fixed on me. I stare back for a moment before the brute disappears. The other tom hesitates, his gaze still lingering on me before turning and disappearing himself. “Bryce,” Nightshadow nudges me, “we have to report this to the Coalition.” I nod and pick up the three mice I caught by their tails before following the two Coalition warriors back to the camp. The moment we reach it, Nightshadow drops off his prey and heads for the leaders’ den. Feathershine drops off her prey too on the fresh-kill pile. “Get some rest, Bryce,” she advises, “it might be awhile before you hear from the leaders on the situation.” I nod briskly but I hesitate. “How long am I going to stay here? I…I want to get back to my sisters.” The light gray tabby she-cat brushes her pelt against mine. “Hopefully soon,” she says sympathetically. I try to put on a smile but fail. Feathershine lingers awkwardly before padding towards her den with Nightshadow and a few more cats. I believe she said it was one of the many warriors’ den scattered around the camp. Shrugging, I head for my temporary den and knock out as soon as I hit the nest. ~ “Bryce,” someone nudges me, “wake up.” “Hm?” I don’t open my eyes, “Ruby, I don’t want to play.” “Who’s Ruby?” I open my eyes in a flash and sit up. “Who are you?” I reply, peering at an amber she-cat who looked like she could be a bigger version of Ruby. “Applepaw. I’m Nightshadow’s apprentice.” “Do you usually go around jumping on Nightshadow in the middle of the territory?” I find myself smirking slightly. Applepaw eyes me with bright green eyes. She snorts. “Who told you that?” “Nightshadow. I accidentally bumped into him while running away from the Vipers. He started shouting about you.” I start to groom my pelt. The younger she-cat guffaws. “That’s funny. I don’t usually tackle him often unless we’re doing something exciting.” Her bright green eyes are the only difference from Ruby. “Applepaw!” Nightshadow pops his head inside the den, “What are you doing in Bryce’s den?” “Having a conversation,” the apprentice says stoutly, “more than you’ve ever done with anyone.” Nightshadow has a sour look on his face and he nudges his apprentice out the entrance. “Go play with your siblings,” he sighs, “we’ll train later.” “Great!” She races out of the den instantly. Nightshadow rolls his dark yellow eyes. “She’s very straightforward with what she wants. I was pretty surprised when Amberstar told me to be her mentor. I mean, I’m not usually a big part of the Coalition.” He sees my expression and mumbles, “I’ll stop talking.” “No!” I shake my head, “Sorry, I just…it was a lot of information to take in after not really knowing you.” “Let’s go outside,” he suggests, “Feathershine snagged a few mice for us to share if you want.” “Thanks,” I purr. I pad outside with the black tom to where Feathershine is sitting. “Hey, Bryce,” the gray she-cat gives me a bright and warm smile before touching noses with Nightshadow. I return the greeting and thankfully accept the mouse she passes to me. She and Nightshadow settle for the second mouse. “How old are you?” Feathershine asks, her green eyes glowing in the fading sunlight. “Seventeen moons. My sisters are five moons.” Nightshadow raises an eyebrow. “You’re quite small for a seventeen moon old cat.” He points out. I flush but manage to keep my cool. “Yeah,” I murmur, “I guess if I had siblings, I would be the runt too.” Feathershine doesn’t say anything. “How old are you two?” I decide to ask instead. “We’re both eighteen moons,” the gray she-cat replies, “we became apprentices and warriors together. The only difference was he came from DuskClan while I came from DawnClan.” “There are two Clans?” I frown, “But you all live together.” “There was,” Nightshadow corrects, “but now we’re just the Coalition. I’m not sure if we’re going to split after this but for now, we’re united as the Coalition to fight the Vipers.” “The Vipers came a few moons ago,” Feathershine adds, “at first all they wanted was the territory but then they kept pushing our borders and telling us to move out. Amberstar and Hawkstar met and decided they couldn’t let them go on. So both Clans had declared war on the Vipers but worked separately. After a moon of fighting, the two Clans realized we were too weak separated.” I take this all in quietly. “What are their motives?” I frown. Nightshadow glances over. “No one is sure,” he admits, “I hear the leader of the Vipers is a tom named Korin. So far, all he seems to want to do is take over the Coalitions and keep them for himself.” I flatten my ears, “I hope he stays out of the Twolegplace.” Oops. That sounded a bit conceited but thankfully Nightshadow just nods his agreement. “Hopefully he stays out of trouble.” “Yeah.” We fall silent and I stand. “I’m going to go on a walk.” Nightshadow looks a bit worried. “Do you want us to come along? You don’t know the territory as well as you think.” “No thank you,” I shake my head, “I want to be alone.” Feathershine watches me while the black tom seems to hesitate before calling Applepaw for training. I head outside alone and breathe in the fresh air of the forest. Despite having stayed here for only two days, the forest feels like the freshest place ever. It was like a safe haven. Yet it wasn’t safe. I find myself in the center of the Dip, gazing across towards the pine forest where I had last seen the Viper toms. To my surprise, the gray-white tom is seated there with a dark gray she-cat by his side. The two of them are talking quietly and when I shift my paws, they both look up. The gray-white tom’s sky blue eyes pin me down. I feel trapped under his stare, as if he could control what I did next. The dark gray she-cat’s eyes are a honey, golden color. They seem to glow like two suns in the dark night. I stare back at them, unsure what to do. Finally, the gray-white tom beckons to the she-cat and with one last glance in my direction, the two of them head deeper into the forest. I stand there, still staring at the spot they last disappeared. I frown before turning and heading back towards the Coalition’s camp. I wonder if I would ever meet those Vipers again. The End. Category:Fan Fictions Category:Cchen3's Fanfics Category:Rise